The younger half of the writing-directing-producing team The Wachowski Brothers, Andy Wachowski dropped out of Emerson College in Boston to pursue a career in show business. Collaborating with his older brother Larry, the duo completed their first script which was optioned by producer Dino De Laurentiis and eventually became the Warner Bros. feature "Assassins" (1995). Another writer polished the script, so the finished product, starring Sylvester Stallone and Antonio Banderas as hit men, veered between generic actioner and character study and ended up a box-office disappointment.
The Wachowskis chose a chancy project for their directorial debut, "Bound" (1996), a romance-thriller featuring Jennifer Tilly and Gina Gershon as criminal lesbians in love. Drawing on influences as varied as Billy Wilder ("Double Indemnity" 1944), Roman Polanski ("Chinatown" 1974) and Sam Raimi ("The Evil Dead" 1983), the brothers set out to create a modern film noir that would invert the genre. With its elaborately stylish camerawork and intriguing story, "Bound" fell into the category of work that one either loved or hated. Receiving generally appreciative reviews, it found a limited, but appreciative audience.
On the other hand, "The Matrix" (1999), the proposed first in a trilogy of futuristic spectaculars that borrowed heavily from such diverse sources as the Bible, "Alice in Wonderland", Hong Kong action flicks and mythology, proved a popular success. Over a period of more than five years, the brothers developed the story for this comic book come to life, penning 14 drafts and overseeing the design of some 500 storyboards. The arduous shoot required the actors (including Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Hugo Weaving and Carrie-Anne Moss) to undergo extensive physical conditioning so the film's innovative, special effects-driven set pieces would have a unique visual flair. The meticulous planning paid off as the film opened at Number One and quickly grossed over $100 million, virtually assuring that the other parts of the trilogy would be successes. After nearly a four-year wait, "Matrix Reloaded" (2003), the second installment, hit theaters.